bad egg
noun
informal + somewhat old-fashioned
: someone who does bad things
He was dishonest, but he was the only bad egg in the group.
Examples of bad egg in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The stars really aligned on this one, because there's just not a bad egg in the group.
—
H. Alan Scott, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Apr. 2025
Lastly, choose your companions carefully—one bad egg in an otherwise collegial foursome can spoil an otherwise divine getaway.
—David Weiss, Forbes, 7 Mar. 2025
Gossip is also usually a sign that discontent stems beyond just one employee deemed to be a bad egg.
—Chloe Berger, Fortune, 13 Apr. 2023
The series is about five sisters who are living outside of Dublin, and one of them is married to a particularly bad egg.
—WIRED, 23 Mar. 2023
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H. Alan Scott, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Apr. 2025
Lastly, choose your companions carefully—one bad egg in an otherwise collegial foursome can spoil an otherwise divine getaway.
—David Weiss, Forbes, 7 Mar. 2025
Gossip is also usually a sign that discontent stems beyond just one employee deemed to be a bad egg.
—Chloe Berger, Fortune, 13 Apr. 2023
The series is about five sisters who are living outside of Dublin, and one of them is married to a particularly bad egg.
—WIRED, 23 Mar. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Bad egg.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bad%20egg. Accessed 1 Oct. 2025.
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